TSMC Commits to $40 Billion Investment of Arizona Fab With 3nm by 2026

TSMC
(Image credit: TSMC)

TSMC on Tuesday is set to formally start installation of tools at its fab near Phoenix, Arizona, an important milestone both for the world's largest contract maker of chips and its clients in the U.S. The company took the opportunity to announce plans to build another phase of its Arizona fab, which will almost quadruple investments into the site and will significantly increase production capacity of the fab.

The second fab at TSMC's Arizona site (or the second phase of the Fab 21, depending  on how you want to look at it) is set to come online in 2026. It will process wafers using TSMC's N3 process technologies, 3nm class nodes that include N3, N3E, N3P, N3S, and N3X. It will also increase production capacity of the camp to 600,000 wafer starts per year, the company announced on Tuesday. It will come online in 2026 and will be one of the foundry's most advanced fabs outside of Taiwan.

(Image credit: TSMC)
Anton Shilov
Contributing Writer

Anton Shilov is a contributing writer at Tom’s Hardware. Over the past couple of decades, he has covered everything from CPUs and GPUs to supercomputers and from modern process technologies and latest fab tools to high-tech industry trends.

  • lmcnabney
    Just like Foxcon in WI, they are just here for the tax subsides.
    Reply
  • Sluggotg
    I am glad to see TSMC continuing to build outside of Taiwan. The Communist Chinese Government could enslave Taiwan at any time. It would be a huge loss to the entire world. (And my TSMC Stock!).
    Reply
  • gg83
    I wonder if it's a deal for the US to protect Taiwan from annexation. Or whatever China wants to do.
    Reply
  • Elusive Ruse
    Chip Act working well it seems, TSMC gets tax exemptions and avoids the CCP's shadow while US gets jobs and maybe cheaper advanced chips for the tech industry?
    Reply
  • 2+2
    lmcnabney said:
    Just like Foxcon in WI, they are just here for the tax subsides.
    I don't think so.
    They started building in the US before the subsidy.
    Reply
  • TJ Hooker
    2+2 said:
    I don't think so.
    They started building in the US before the subsidy.
    Yes and no. They did announce a planned ~$12B Arizona fab in 2020, before any major subsidies were announced AFAIK (or at least any federal ones), but they massively increased their plans once the CHIPS act came into the picture. And implied that the scope and speed of that expansion hinged on the CHIPs act being passed.

    https://www.reuters.com/technology/exclusive-tsmc-looks-double-down-us-chip-factories-talks-europe-falter-2021-05-14/https://www.washingtonpost.com/us-policy/2022/06/28/tsmc-arizona-construction-subsidies/
    Reply
  • A Stoner
    Am I reading the charts right, that Arizona will get old technology in 2026? Arizona will get N3 tech a year after N2 tech launches.
    Reply
  • Geef
    A Stoner said:
    Am I reading the charts right, that Arizona will get old technology in 2026? Arizona will get N3 tech a year after N2 tech launches.

    It won't matter since the newest gen chips aren't the only thing getting produced. Anyway once the N3 tech hardware is in place it won't be set in stone to only do N3. They will continually upgrade/expand the location most likely. Having their physical locations spread around the world helps TSMC from being forced by 'certain' governments to do their bidding.
    Reply
  • btmedic04
    Happy to see it, but this definitely feels like a "just in case Taiwan ceases to exist as a sovereign entity" type move to ensure the future survival of TSMC
    Reply
  • Amdlova
    China invades Taiwan 2026 - 2027
    Reply